Monday, March 06, 2006

Calling All Girls-More Heartaches

Hi Girls! Here's a preview of some more characters from the Heartaches cartoon in development. Let me know if you want to read more stories!!

This is Debbie Doublebubble. She is the Heartaches' road manager and protector. She kicks ass-especially the asses of boys who are mean and immature-which is all of them!(Character design by Gabe Swarr!)

Here is Roxy's neighbor, Mr. Crusty. He hates loud rock music so whenever Roxy's band is playing in the garage, he turns up all his laid-back 70s records real loud to drown out the evil rock music. He loves any music sung by people named Neil: Neil Diamond, Neil Young and Neil Sedaka.

(Character design by Gabe Swarr!)

This is Mr. Crusty's pet, Crabby the Duck. He is a duck curmudgeon. He doesn't like other pets, especially Roxy's cat, Maynard. He is always challenging Maynard to no-holds-barred fisticuffs on Mr. Crusty's lawn. Maynard is terrified of this foul-billed bully.All the bugs on the lawn love to watch the fur and feathers fly.

Here's Eric the DJ. He feels he is a soul mate to the girls in the Heartaches' band, because he has a talent too.The girls' talent is to make records. Eric's talent is to take the records and scratch them up, which drives Roxy crazy. Eric is always taking her classic rock albums and scratching the living crap out of them.He has other talents too, like kicking the toaster, pulling the tape out of videocasettes and eating crayons then shooting the mashed bits from his nose onto wax paper.The girls make fun of his talents and he can't figure out why because he has seen Eminem get rich on even less ability. He is envious of the one amazing talent that Eminem has: The ability to catch his pants just at the moment they are about to fall off.(Character design by Gabe Swarr!)

Darla Dumbell has failed 3 years in a row. She's in Roxy's class and is 3 years ahead in physical development from the other girls. She is the bad girl of the class and all the boys love her but she only dates boys from reform school.She gets expelled all the time.Bad bad bad.(Character design by Gabe Swarr!)

Tammy Training Bra is training under Darla to be bad. She's not really stupid enough to be bad but tries real hard.Darla is embarrassed to be seen with her but happily takes her money and makes her do her homework and stuff.

starting to flesh out. seeing it in action helps - i especially liked the videos in the previous post. i want to see what, aside from the drawings, will make this show special. more key drawings! more storyboards! more scripts! please..

Seems like you have a lot of ideas for shows! I was wondering if others helped you come up with the ideas...and if the ideas formed over the years, or just sprung up recently (or a combination). Ha hah, it looks like that Eric the DJ guy has an antenna sticking out of his hat or something! Oh yeah, if you can guess a date when some shows can be made, that'd be good too...although I have no idea how's it going for you, other than you need more money or something?

You use a good amount of randomness, and I don't know how random you like stuff, but if you need more inspiration for your work, I recommend looking at some of Bill Plympton's and Bruno Bozzetto's stuff. Other things you may get some cool ideas from: Rock & Rule, Fantastic Planet, and Wizards (you probably already know about Wizards, but others here might not know about it).

From the other stuff around here, it looks like you're into audio too... I don't know if you're into audio reproduction or whatever, but if you're not, than maybe some new equipment can help you with your ideas? You have good money and there's a whole world of good quality audio that you may have never noticed (and could enjoy)... Me myself, I don't have much experience with different stuff...but lots of people are getting into the AKG K701 and a lot are awaiting the release of the Shure E500 (these Shure's are said to compete with or exceed the performance of the custom UE-10 Pro, the UE-10 Pro costing around twice the price of the Shure E500). However, it would be expensive to get into such an audio hobby, but if you ever get some real production going on some cartoons, I would definately recommend that you or someone else recommends something like these products to the people in charge of the audio in the cartoons (it could help with the audio quality, and therefore maybe sort of sub-consciously attract viewers, especially if the stuff airs on TV).

hmmm...for the most part i like the developement of the show, i, though, am not a huge fan of the character design on the dj kid, its not bad, but i dunno somethin just dosnt sit right with him to me, i think its either the jetsons antenna on his hat or his premature sideburns, i dunnothe rest look good, especiall tammy training bra, i cracked up when i read that, and i think ive seen that duck somewhere before

You guys must be insane, Eric the DJ is the best character ever!! He looks as retarded as he should, I can almost hear his obnoxious laugh inside my head! Brian Romero's comment about the 'little girl in all of us' is just damn scary, because it's way too right.

Neil Sedaka and Neil Diamond I can unnerstan' but Neil Young? You must mean Crosby Stills Nash & Young ... I mean has this guy heard LIVE RUST? Otherwise, nice retro cartoon feel designs by Gabe Swarr. Wasn't Maynard The Cat one of your walkem prizes from Weekend Pussy Hunt? I've gotta power up the old 98SE and check my files ...Speaking of WPH, can Bugs Pussy make a cameo on either The Heartaches or Atomic Pig? That is a great character!

Hey John did ya see cartoon brew today their censoring the hanging song from out west in the UK dvd release they think if british people watch the CARTOON hanging they probably do the same now thats just Moronic !!!

The Tammy Trainingbra character is pure genius. She kind of reminds me of Charlie Brown's sister Sally grown into tweendom.

But what I hope is she's really conflicted between her intelligence and her misplaced desire to be bad. Two polarities at war within her psyche. Intense character drama but externalized because this is a cartoon after all.

Is the bad girl stupid? I know she's failed three times but maybe that's a deliberate choice on her part. She inhabits the role of the bad girl and it comes easily to her perhaps because she simply enjoys being bad. Failing a class is expected of the bad girl, or at least she's not supposed to care about academics.

Perhaps she's completely at peace with this. That would certainly give her inner strength and make her a worthy adversary for the Heartaches and would keep her from being just a cipher, stereotype, or cliche.

The dj dude's hat is kind of 90s but I love his looks. Did you think about a more ruggedly handsome dj though? One all the chicks dig, rather than just a tagalong friend. Maybe someone egotistical and self-assured but not genuinely an asshole.

Or is that pulling the focus too much away from the main characters? I guess that might depend on how often he appears.

I have a friend who's a dj and a crack artist/web designer. She was heavily into this scene in the 90s. I'm going to show it to her and get some feedback... although she's a busy busy person these days.

Anyway, those are just some thoughts I had while looking at those designs. I know this cartoon isn't aimed at the likes of me but I like riffing off those drawings and doing some intense thinking about characters and conflict.

Seriously, that raver DJ kid needs to get beat up in every episode by the girls. I hate those cat in the hat hats. Even though this show is for girls, I can honestly say I would watch religiously if there's a raver kid getting beat up by little girls.

"OMG like this is soooooo cute! I just so love it! Like I so want the dolls when they comes out" -- My inner child talking

This is fantastic - I really think that this show could appeal to girls of all ages, and I think that this show will make a lot of parents happy since this is going against the grain of "sexing up" little girl cartoon characters (a la Bratz and My Scene). Even the "sexed-up" character isn't OTT.

It's one thing to stab easy targets like Jessica Simpson and the like, but bashing Kanye here betrays your own sensibilities a little too much for what you're going for here... I'm not even a Kanye fan to be honest.

Really, there's no difference between poking Kanye West and Jessica Simpson. In fact it's braver to pick Kanye because really, making fun of Jessica is like kicking a dead dog. I have nothing against Kanye, just to make it clear. I never even heard one of his songs, nor have any curiosity to do so.

You should tell Neil Diamond that he's in this thing. He'll come live on your front lawn, shouting his name top volume until someone listens. "Solitary Man" was decent AM radio, however. Then 1966 ruined it.

Considering his two albums have averaged 84 and 87 on metacritic (a review aggregator) and praised critically, no, I would say he's far from being "proven" garbage. High sales generally don't prove talent, but being appreciated in sales AND criticism should imply something.

I don't even care about defending Kanye West, I haven't bought his albums. My point is that acting blase about bashing him in a character description is a mistake.

Not that this matters anyway, unless you planned to use that line in the actual toon.

Isn't making all the band members pretty along the lines of using stock expressions? Same with making the antagonists ugly except for the one pretty bitchy girl, and having one secondary good side moose.

if it weren't for eric the dj, everything would be fine. really. he needs to be redesigned. he doesn't really matches the style of the other characters and he looks very bland, similar to what you'd find in some boring and bland nelvana flash-based craptoon for tasteless execs.

These characters look great! Eric's current look may work if he's supposed to be the "tragically unhip" type. It's outdated just enough to be rather corny, but not painfully so. However, if there are indeed plans to update him, I'd just switch out the Dr. Seuss hat for a Du-rag. I made a poor attempt at a cartoon DJ; there's not much difference and my style sucks but if it will help for any ideas....

i tried to stay true to the original, just added some stuff, looks like romero and i are/were on the smae vibe, but i kept this hat instead of the sideways cap, but that was a tough call, mostly came down to me not being able to draw, haha...anyway: DJ Eric

To all the people who think these are suppsoed to look like Fairly Oddparents or wahtever, they are in the style of 50's UPA style design by Ed Benedict and Mary Blair and them. Check out CartoonModern.com for more on thse great artists...

hmmm...i dont really think any of these are in ths spirit of fairly odd parents, fop uses a style in which nearly every line is strait and prefers angles to corners, that not what i see in any of these, nor do i see floating anything, hats, etc...but thats just my opinion

It just occured to me that Red should be specially pissed by Eric, because she's a drummer. If he is into electronic music his first suggestion to the band would probably be to replace Red by a drum machine!

I like that the girls are talented and the boys eat crayons and kick defensless toasters. I get a kick out of the armpit hair, more charaters should have it, it makes silly people like me laugh... cuz,we all know people who look like that.

These supporting characters are excellent, particularly Darla and the duck as antagonists. There are so many story opportunities which can involve this great cast of characters. I would love to hear more of them!

Dang, it's good to have you in the blogosphere - I'm a long time fan and aspiring fractional cartoonist - I can't draw, but I can think up snarky social commentary.Anyhow - I need help: I'm Raging Gurrl (on blogger.com) and it's time for an image makeover.Can somone help me come up with a cartoon character for "Raging Gurrl"? She'd be a smart ass, but cute...in a Buttercup sort of way.

This is entirely off-topic, but Johnny, I'm damned glad to see you're still doing stuff! I miss your old projects, but I dig the new stuff! In case you're curious, I was part of that lot that wanted to see The Ripping Friends plunked on Cartoon Network's Adult Swim(as well as any other projects ya might have around that time...). The petition's still there at Online Petition, I'd wager, but it's kind of a moot point by now.

In any case, keep up the good work, good sir. Hope ta see ya on the television again real soon!

I like this work alot. Quite some time ago when I saw the Old Navy spots I was so sure it was your work, it had alot of appeal. I'm gonna run these by my 11 year old sister. My only personal crits are that I agree the DJ looks a little to PPG, and that it seems a character with 'training bra' in her name (plus the bio) may not fly with the networks for pre-teen girl TV. It might be pegged as not appealing to a sensitive issue...am I wording that wrong? Keep it up, dude! I've been sending all my buddies to comment on your blog. Oh yeah Pat Smith is my prof, worked under him for awhile, the picture of you two at Ottawa cracks me up!

>>I'm 19 and think that baggy pants are ridiculous. Same goes for ones that are so tight you can see what religion the guy is. What's wrong with wearing clothes that fit normally?Comfort and style. Actually, baggy pants aren't even that cool anymore, the trend these days is guys wearing girl pants to be "hardcore" But I don't follow trends, it just so happens that the style I like is considered "hip-hop" and "urban" (which I am.) Low riding pants make the pants look baggier which is, imho, cooler. Plus, the girls love it, I could care less what other guys think, most girls I know think it looks sweet, as do I. Your boxers d tend to hang out but you can't see them underneath your shirt so it's not a big deal. Also, your pants never fall off, that's why people invented belts. Just put the belt tight, and don't wear them THAT low. But if you're playing basketball, you have to put them lower you you can move easier. It's a delicate balance, trust me. Anyway, that's my 3 cents.

I showed these to my sister, she said the main heartaches were really cute, She said Curly Fuzz Poodle should be smaller, cuter, like *shudder* Paris Hilton's dog. She said she doesn't think Debbie should be heavy. She said she should be more liek Dolly Parton, with alot of make-up and exagerrated hair, not as butch. She says Crabby The Duck is funny. She says she really likes Eric, he's her favourite, but he should have a big chain. She says Darla Dumbell is good. She suggested that Darla always change her look, as in "pink is the new black" but in a dumb way. She alwso said she liked Tammy Training Bra. She said she would watch it if it was on.

>>Plus, the girls love it, I could care less what other guys think, most girls I know think it looks sweet, as do I.

I'm a girl and i think i'll agree with whoever said they're ridiculous. The only guys i see dressed that way are pretty stupid, and so are the girls who like them. I'm speaking in the hopes that people who haven't made up their minds yet don't turn themselves into moron fashion zombies.

Anyway, I'm 19 but I'd love to see the show, i like every single character, even Eric the DJ, and I wouldn't change a thing about him, the hat makes him look pathetic, which in turns makes me laugh.

1st anonymous here again... Hhhmmmm, I wonder if Spumco will allow fan-based stories/ideas/etc. to be implemented into a cartoon...one of these days, hah..... Oh, man, pure insanity! Except the "pure" part is sort of misleading... My qualifications: Drugless/friendless/sexless male teenager, will not want any money from Spumco, "creatively" driven from some stuff...like the music I listen to is literally as psychadelic as it gets (no mainstream, also meaning no mainstream from the past! Yes man, some stuff SERIOUSLY way weirder than Pink Floyd, The Beatles...anything that a lot of people knew about in the past/etc.) Aahh, just joking...man I'm bored... :)

Anyways keep helping out with Heartaches, as in, you girls should comment and say stuff so we can see more stories!

If I'm being improper here, than please delete this post so I won't post in this comment page again (lol, I just got banned from somewhere else this month...it's funny when people respond to my insanity). Otherwise, girls keep helping, and if any of you guys need to (for some reason...) need to know something I didn't fully explain, then let me know (but stay on topic with Heartaches too). ;)

I read on the GAC forums (I think that's where I saw it) that those Ren & Stimpy dvds will be out in December just in time for Christmas shopping.Hey, John, it also said that these episodes will actually BE UNEDITTED this time. So then should we buy this set and throw our editted set out the window? (or off a bridge into traffic)

Okay I printed thse characters out and shown them to my fair lady's niece. Here is a seven year old girl's opinion:Debbie is funny , she looks kinda like some of my friends' mommies. Is she a good person? O.K. I like her, she's got a silly smile.Is that man (Mr Crusty) sick? Why has he got a purple face? Oh he's just mean. Why? Oh. Why is he in his underwear? He's like Mr. Rodriguez across the street, does he drink beer - you don't know? Well he's scary looking, why am I supposed to like him, oh OK, yes he's a mean guy. He's a funny, I guess, I think the underwear is silly (giggle)What's on top the duck's head, a hat? No it isn't, it's a handle, you know, like my bike. Is he a toy? No. (laughing)Is he supposed to be scary, too? He is he funny, is that his toilet - oh it's a wading pool(giggle)(imitates Crabby's pose and breaks up laughing)I don't like this guy at all(Eric The DJ), okay I'm done, no I don't like him, OK bye bye, I'm done.

I already hace seen ( and own) all of your APC episodes but would like to know how your dvd will look like, expecially about extra and special features.I'll buy it the minute it will be available.And I hope that the ultimate set will be UNCUT this time..

However, once John makes DJ Eric a household name I'll create a "spinoff" to shop around town entitled "Phat Phredrick", about a boy fights evil by bestowing the virtues of a well looped drum beat. Also, he'll use his belt (which he refuses to wear) to whip criminals into shape and speaks in a sooper secret language that only kids under 15 in internet chat rooms can understand! W00t!

this stuff brings the heartaches to a whole new dimension... a good dimension... and i think a wider audience. great to see some different shaped characters entering into the picture. good luck with selling this one! (although i'd rather see you using your cartoon genius to bring us more george liquor and friends)

However, once John makes DJ Eric a household name I'll create a "spinoff" to shop around town entitled "Phat Phredrick", about a boy fights evil by bestowing the virtues of a well looped drum beat. Also, he'll use his belt (which he refuses to wear) to whip criminals into shape and speaks in a sooper secret language that only kids under 15 in internet chat rooms can understand! W00t!

This will be a large (and not-very-helpful) comment, but here's what I got back from the mother of a 5-yr-old girl named April: "1. Do you think you would like to see a cartoon like this? Yes Why? The girls blond hair I like. What do you think of the story line? I think its good. 2. Is there anything you don't like? "I don't like Debby Doublebubble because I can see her arm-pits, and I just don't think thats good. When mommy said that she was going to throw away the poodle, I think that, that was mean, I think that maybe mom should let Roxy keep the poodle." 3. What do you think about the ending? "I think its super happy and I hope that everyone lives happly ever after." 4. Would you like to see anything done differently? "Yes" Like what? "I would like her to have different clothes, like a pink shirt, purple skirt, black boots, pig tails, and maybe a little make up."5. But over all do you think its good, and would you watch it?? "Yes I would love to see and watch something like this."

i like all the ideas behind the charchters. i would like to add with your ideas of the dj - he needs a side way hat. also on the bad girl years ahead - i think bad girls need to wear black with thier walking boots.

Now I asked an 8 year-old girl named Ashley to critique The Heartaches, this is what her mom wrote to me: "Ashley said that she thinks there should be a dream boat type boy with blonde hair like Jesse McCartney. There should also be a girl who moves in the neighborhood that is a total diva.She also said that the dog should have a twin that is dumb---like a smarty pants and a dumb ass."

Make this show and my 12 nieces will all watch it and buy lots of junk.My niece's ages vairy from 6 to 15 and I showed them all this section of your blog and they approve!2 are african american and the rest are white. Their parents have money and will buy them associated toys and stuff to go with the show. MAKE THE CARTOON!